"What do you mean?" Ailord asked, confused.
The Commander just smiled, standing up with the help of the girl. "Isn't this the wrong time to talk?"
Ailord realized they were still on a ship that was about to crash into the magic dome. They were fortunate that the previous explosion could be contained. He grabbed their bodies and ran towards the control room, ignoring his protests.
"What are you doing? Just leave us here. You can't save both us and them. At times like this, you have to choose between the two," said the Commander to Ailord. He wanted to struggle free, but the pain throughout his body made him abandon the idea. Meanwhile, the girl just remained silent, her eyes widening with each step they took closer to the glass.
Ailord ran out, shielding them both from the shattered glass and passing by a high-level Mana Stone that should have been an extra point for him.
"It's useless, that Mana Stone has already been sealed with magic so it can't be used by anyone, and once it's moved from its place, it will explode," said the Commander, noticing Ailord looking in that direction.
He was frustrated because he couldn't use the collection of Mana Stones, regretting that he hadn't taken them earlier. But there was nothing more he could do except jump from the ship's deck towards the wall.
Glok and the others wondered what he was doing and quickly moved aside, while Teena, aided by Heyla who had drunk a Mana Potion, worked to open the magic dome. A strong tremor occurred, accompanied by a thick cloud of dust that made the kingdom's inhabitants scream. They thought their lives were in danger as the tremor made their hearts pound intensely.
Glok hurriedly approached, waving the cloud of dust away. "What are you doing?" But without needing an answer, he could already see the answer when Ailord lowered two badly injured people. "Ailord."
"I know what you want to say, but I need you to trust me now. If anything happens, I will take full responsibility. However, please heal them with magic," he quickly requested, then prepared to jump back. "I will explain once this is all over, but for now, I'm asking for your help."
He jumped, once again creating a strong tremor that surprised the inhabitants again.
Reyn approached, pointing the tip of his sword at the figure of the Commander, who could only sit leaning against the parapet, panting. "If you dare to do anything, I'll make sure, you will lose your life instantly," he threatened.
The Commander chuckled softly. "I can't do anything anymore, I will die soon anyway. There's nothing else I can do, young man."
Glok approached, slowly lowering Reyn's sword. "Enough, just trust him. Besides, in this situation, they can't do anything to us," he said, trying to calm Reyn, who seemed ready to kill someone from the sharp look in his eyes.
Reyn snorted harshly, sheathed his sword, and moved away from there. He didn't want to see those two humans, or he might lose control and take their lives.
Not far ahead, Ailord hurriedly opened Blandar, pressing the 'YES' button on the confirmation screen, grimacing at the number of points required. At that moment, two Armored Suits appeared before his eyes, just as he landed on the ship's deck. They landed together, causing the ship to tremble for a moment before finally standing tall, awaiting orders.
Ailord earned 50,000 points from inserting the high-level Mana Stone, allowing him to create two lightweight AIs capable of executing simple commands. They couldn't yet behave like living beings because Ailord believed that would consume more points, which were currently limited. He needed something to help him face the remaining Copperhaven forces and push them back. He was confident that after seeing the capabilities of the iron Constructs, the appearance of two more iron Constructs would demoralize them.
The two AIs had the same form with the same orange color on their helmets. The distinguishing feature between him and them was the AIs had a holographic emblem on their shoulder armor inscribed with 'HM' in bright orange. This stood for 'Humanoid,' with serial numbers below ranging from 01 to 02.
Now, the screen displayed new information about the AI soldiers and their status. Everything was still orange with a hundred percent rating, while Walker's energy was at 70 percent. With this setup, even though Ailord couldn't move due to Death's Touch, he at least had them to assist Veyrain in dealing with Copperhaven.
The screen also showed another serial number with the emblem 'CR,' which was still at 80 percent.
Ailord saw the Mana Stone in front of him and tried to insert it into Blandar, but a notification screen appeared, informing him that the Mana Stone had been magically sealed by Copperhaven and was unstable, about to explode soon, making it unusable as a source of points.
"F*ck," he muttered in frustration, even though he knew the Commander had already told him.
Who wouldn't be frustrated imagining how many points he could have exchanged with such a high-level Mana Stone? He could have created so many troops or something even more extraordinary.
Ailord took a deep breath, looked at his soldiers, and gave the order, "Jump down, eliminate every knight still alive, don't let a single one escape."
They nodded and jumped off the deck while Ailord leaped towards the back, where he clung to the side of the ship, which suddenly tilted.
He gripped tightly, staring at the vast and numerous Copperhaven forces below, shouting, "TAKE THIS WELCOME GIFT FROM US!"
Ailord took advantage of the momentum to throw the Mana Stone towards the Copperhaven forces, who were retreating to avoid the massive explosion. The knights were shocked to see the flying ship moving quickly and closing in on them, giving them no time to escape. They exerted all their efforts, trying to move as fast as possible, but deep down, they knew fate had answered.
From the direction of the wall, a bright light appeared briefly, forcing them to shield their eyes with the backs of their hands. A strong wind blew, accompanied by a massive explosion that formed a high plume of smoke, almost reaching Veyrain. The ground shook violently, and the elves who still had mana hurried to control the vines to catch those who had fallen.
Glok planted his sword into the wall, trying to maintain his balance, just like Reyn, who gripped his sword hilt so tightly his knuckles turned white. Meanwhile, Rako, Teena, and Heyla held on firmly to the nearest parapet, screaming as they couldn't fathom such a massive explosion shaking an entire kingdom.
Feeling the explosion, the elders looked back, seeing the thick, high plume of smoke not far from the kingdom, and prayed that the explosion hadn't affected the magic dome, or Veyrain wouldn't survive.
Zayn and the remaining Copperhaven knights seized the opportunity to flee. Zayn used his skill, which allowed him to create darkness within a 20-meter radius where he could teleport to a previously marked area. This skill could only be used once a day and was reserved for escape, and for the first time, it was activated.
Those within the radius were teleported not far from the explosion, where they were immediately thrown by the strong wind. Fortunately, Zayn quickly used his chain skill to anchor them to the ground, or more of his troops might have died. They hadn't expected not only their attack to fail but also the reinforcement. For the first time, Copperhaven's main force experienced a failure that made Zayn clench his fist tightly.
As the explosion subsided, the sound of battle, or more accurately, a massacre, drew their attention. Glok and the others hurried back to the parapet, shocked to find two more iron Constructs systematically eliminating the remaining Copperhaven knights. They showed no mercy, moving as Constructs do, executing their mission without a heart.
Ailord stood not far ahead, observing the thick plume of smoke, pondering that the explosive power was akin to a small-scale nuclear explosion but without the radiation. He wondered if this was similar to the bombs used in World War II, but seeing it in this world made him curious about the creator of the Constructs. He hoped that person wasn't from the same world as him, though the possibility was high.
At the same time, Luna glanced at Ailord briefly before being obscured by the smoke as they ran away, hurriedly seeking a safe place before being discovered by the two iron Constructs that were wreaking havoc on the Copperhaven forces. Although they kept moving forward, they no longer had enough strength and were merely marching to their deaths. They had witnessed with their own eyes how their forces were decimated by just one of these Constructs. Now, more than one was pursuing them to wipe out the Copperhaven troops. If it weren't for the kingdom's misguided teachings, they might have fled like Captain Zayn and his men.
Zayn also didn't want to do this, but his sister's presence changed everything. He had no choice but to perform this humiliating act and face the consequences upon returning to the kingdom. Despite the shame, he couldn't let Luna be in great danger. No one could touch her.
"What are we going to do now?" Rako asked, continuously observing the chaos below.
"Breathe, all we can do now is breathe," Glok replied.